Santa Clara University
Department of Counseling Psychology
Psych 315: Family Therapy (3QH)
Winter 2013: Tuesdays 5:45-8:45PM
INSTRUCTOR: Valerie B. Jordan, Ph.D.,vjordan@scu.edu; 909-625-7443
Office hours: Tuesdays by appointment
REQUIRED TEXTBOOKS:
Goldenberg, H. & Goldenberg, I. (2013). Family therapy: An overview (8th ed). Belmont,
CA: Brooks/Cole.
McGoldrick, M., Gerson, R. & Petry, S. (2008). Genograms: Assessment and
intervention (3rd ed). New York: W.W. Norton. (GenoPro registration key:
8KR-96D-AMK-NE4-TMP (user name 1162986). Available at SCU.
Walsh, F. (Ed.). (2012). Normal family processes: Growing diversity and complexity
(4th ed.). New York: Guilford Press.
COURSE GOALS: This course reviews the major theories and empirically supported
techniques of family therapy, as well as a range of contemporary topics in family
therapy. Some of these topics include divorce and remarriage, single parent families,
‘non-traditional families’, adoption, foster families, military families, families with ill
family members, alcoholic families, family secrets and rituals, etc. These topics will be
examined from biopsychosocial, life cycle, multicultural and ecological perspectives.
Another primary goal is self-awareness of one’s own family-of-origin. Students will also
become familiar with professional organizations pertaining to family therapy as well as
the knowledge and skill content areas of the BBS licensing exam for MFTs.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS: Course prerequisites are Psy 212 and 227. Class
attendance is required and no absences are permitted without instructor approval. The
class is graded on a letter grade basis (A, A-, B+ and B), and all assignments must be
completed on the stated due date in order to receive a final grade. Excessive absences
and/or lateness of assignments may result in a 10% grade reduction on the assignment
and/or final course grade. Please refer to the SCU Counseling Program Student
Handbook for more information on the program’s attendance policies.
1. Class participation and discussion: Your participation includes your involvement in
class discussions and activities, and counts as 10% of the final grade. Students are
expected conduct themselves professionally, arrive on time, be familiar with and adhere
to SCU policies concerning academic honesty, and complete the assigned readings by the
dates listed in the course schedule.
2. Exams: There will be a mid-term and final exam. Each exam will cover the required
readings from the Goldenberg & Goldenberg and Walsh texts up to the date of the exam.
Each exam will consist of 40 multiple choice questions and several short essays on
specific topics TBA. The format of these exams is similar to the MFT licensing exam
and is intended to prepare students for the MFT licensing exam (www.bbs.ca.gov.,
candidate handbook). Each exam counts as 20% of the final grade.
3. Family-of-origin (F-o-o) paper: This paper will explore your own family-of-origin.
There are 4 required sections in this paper:
1. The first section will include any 2 theories of your choice from the readings
and apply them both to your F-o-o.
2. The second section will design a hypothetical family therapy session with your
F-o-o using one of the theories reviewed in class or one of the 2 theories reviewed
in section 1.
3. The third section will be a 2-generational genogram of your F-o-o following the
guidelines in McGoldrick et al. and using the GenoPro program. Select 2 themes
to include in the genogram (i.e., illness, culture, divorce, etc.) and explore these
themes and new insights you have learned about your F-o-o from doing the
genogram.
4. The fourth section will be one activity of your choice that would be meaningful
for you. Some of these options (select 1) include: 1: A book review of a book that
has personal and professional meaning to you (with instructor approval);
2: Designing a family event (real or imagined) with your family-of-origin; 3: An
interview with a family member from your family-of-origin; 4: Any other activity
you design (with instructor approval) that has meaning for you. Describe the
nature of the activity you have selected and why, what you have learned about
yourself and your F-o-o, and the impact this activity has on your personal and
professional development.
This assignment must be between 12-15 pages, counts as 35% of the final grade and is
due 3/12. Students will give a brief presentation in class about this paper.
4. Group project: Students will select a topic of interest pertaining to various topics in
family therapy from the Walsh text and prepare a group paper and presentation that
focuses on the current theoretical and practice issues concerning this topic. This project is
designed to create an opportunity for up to 4 students to work together on a topic of their
choice. The presentation must include any AAMFT, CAMFT, ACA or any other relevant
resources, referrals or guidelines (including websites), a brief video clip involving some
examples of therapeutic interventions and materials specific to your topic, and current
professional journal articles on this topic (one per student).
The class presentation should be between 30-40 minutes, and include the use of
appropriate audio-visuals such as power point and/or handouts. All members of the
group must participate in the class presentation. The written document should be
between 6-8 double-spaced pages and can be used as the basis for the class presentation.
The written paper should summarize the main theoretical and therapeutic issues on this
topic, along with 4-6 relevant professional references in APA (2010) format.
It is expected that group members will work together in cooperative and collegial
manner, with all group members contributing in a fair and comparable manner to the final
product. The group will receive one overall grade for both the class presentation and
written document. Each group must consult with the instructor about their topic. This
assignment will count as 15% of the final grade.
Students are required to prepare all papers according to APA (2010) style. My
criteria for grading papers are: quality of writing; organization of ideas and content;
demonstration of knowledge and insight about the topic; inclusion of all topics listed in
the assignment; and correct APA format. Papers that do not meet minimum standards
for graduate level work will be returned for revisions and re-submission. Be sure to
include your original paper with the revised version. Assignments are due on the dates
listed in the course schedule; any exceptions to those dates will be made without
penalty only with the instructor’s approval. All papers must be double-spaced, printed
in 12-point font, and number all pages. Papers may be emailed to the instructor on the
due date.
Students are reminded about SCU policies on academic honesty that appear in the
SCU catalog and program handbook and are expected to abide by them on all
assignments. Students are reminded that the contents of all class discussions and case
examples are confidential, and must be sensitive about respecting and maintaining
colleague and client confidentiality.
All electronic devices must be turned off and removed during class time. Please do
not check any of these devices during class time. Students are permitted to use laptops
in class only for the purposes of class note taking—any other use of laptops during
class time will result in the permanent removal of laptop privileges. Students who do
not observe these guidelines will lose laptop privileges and be required to leave all
electronic devices outside the classroom.
SUMMARY OF COURSE ASSIGNMENTS
Assignment % of final grade Due date
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Mid-term exam 20% 2/12
Family-of-origin paper 35% 3/12
Class participation 10% Weekly
Group project presentations 15% 1/29, 2/5, 2/19, 2/26
Final exam 20% 3/19
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Psych 315: Winter 2013 Course Schedule
Week/Date Topics Assignments & due date
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1: 1/8 Course overview
Overview of family therapy G&G: 1
Basic assumptions/concepts of family therapy W: 1 & 2
2: 1/15 Normal family process & life cycles G&G: 2
Family life cycle and resilience W: 16 & 17
Ethical & professional issues G&G: 6
3: 1/22 Systems theory & historical review G&G: 4 & 5
Multi/transgenerational theory G&G: 8
Genograms MGP: 1, 2, 3
4: 1/29 Structural theories G&G: 10
Genograms MGP: 4, 5, 6
Family models: Couples & marriage W: 3, 4, & 18
Group presentations
5: 2/5 Strategic family therapy G&G: 11
Family models : Divorce, single & blended families, W: 5, 6 & 7
LGBT families, illness & families W: 8 & 19
Group presentations
6: 2/12 Mid-term exam
Practice: Genograms MGP: 7 & 9
7: 2/19 Psychodynamic & experiential family therapy G&G: 7 & 9
Genograms: Freud & Erickson MCP: 8
Family models: Caregiving & adoption, spirituality W: 9, 10, & 15
Group presentations
8: 2/26 Post-modern/Social construction models:
Solution-focused & narrative therapy G&G: 3, 13 & 14
Culture, class, immigration & gender W: 11, 12, 13 & 14
Group presentations
9: 3/5 Behavioral, cognitive-behavioral theories &
psychoeducational models G&G: 12 &15
Genograms: Family play therapy MGP: 10
Family models: Family rituals & secrets W: 20
10: 3/12 Comparisons and critiques G&G: 16 &17
Family therapy research & assessment W: 21, 22 & 23
Genograms: Family research MGP: 11
Family of origin paper & presentation due
11: 3/19 Final exam
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Practice role-plays, topic reviews, group activities, videos and in-class presentations will
occur weekly. The schedule is subject to updates/changes as the course progresses.
Psy315: 1/2013